Bangko Sentral: Be wary of online posts on fake misprinted bills

ABS-CBN News

MANILA - The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Saturday warned the public against social media posts bearing false information on supposed misprinted peso bills, saying these may affect business transactions in the country.

Social media posts about misprinted peso bills that were missing either faces or denominations circulated online after the BSP admitted on Thursday that some P100 bills were printed without the face of late President Manuel Roxas due to a mechanical glitch.

"The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) strongly urges the public to refrain from acts that could cast doubt on the credibility of our legal tender," the BSP said in a statement posted on its official Facebook page.

"Posting photos of alleged misprinted banknotes on social media causes confusion which may negatively affect commerce," the statement read.

The Central Bank also advised the public to be wary of those who may take advantage of the misprinting incident.

"The public is also advised to be vigilant against acts of those who wish to confuse, deceive or illegally profit from posting, producing and/or selling fake 'misprinted' notes with no numismatic value," the BSP said.

The Central Bank also urged the public to have misprinted notes authenticated and exchanged at the BSP.

"The BSP assures the public that it is, and has, always been committed to safeguarding the authenticity and genuineness of our currency and to protecting the public interest," the bank said.

The "faceless" P100 bills are "technically considered" as legal tender and collectors items, but the BSP advised against using them in regular transactions as some security features may already be missing from the bills.